Review: The Star Wars Saga

Six films.  Twelve hours.  What I won't do for Club Penguin.

Source: Star Wars Wikia

If you had told me a single day before the Star Wars Takeover was confirmed in a Club Penguin Support email that I would have completed the entire Star Wars Series within the next two weeks I would have told you, "Not likely!"  You see, I had always intended to watch all of the Star Wars movies at one point - to see what all the hub-bub was about - but they didn't really interest me a whole lot.  I mean, I like fantasy stories (Harry Potter!  Harry Potter!  Harry Potter!) but only when they have an ounce of realism to them - not when they're in a different galaxy with a bunch of weird planets, ships, and creatures.

But, that single email made me hunt down the movies and watch them as quickly as I could so that I would know what was going on in the sneak peeks and have a clue about the references at the party.

Source: Reviewtm

And, you know what, I can now say I am a small fan of the franchise.  I mean, am I going to dress up as a Stormtrooper and attend Star Wars fan conventions?  No.  Am I going to save up my cash to get the $500 Death Star LEGO set?  I wouldn't count on it.  But, am I excited for the seventh movie in 2015?  Sort of.  I'm a casual fan, not a super fan.

But, with both trilogies of films completed I have to say I enjoy the Prequel Series (1999 - 2005) more than the Original Series from before most Club Penguin players were born.  This is ironic considering the Prequel Trilogy's films are regarded by most Star Wars super-fans as the movies that ruined the franchise.  It may be that I like one, two, and three better because they have more modern special effects (the effects from the '80's are laughable in compare), but I also thought the stories were better from the prequels as well.  The fact I'm on the minority side of the argument doesn't surprise me - it seems to happen all the time when I pick favorites. (For instance, the new movie The Lone Ranger has been one of my favorite movies of the year, yet many critics despised it.  Go see that movie and please tell me I'm not crazy! ;p)

Source: Wikipedia

However, if there's one thing I have to criticize it's the length of certain moments in the film.  For example, there is a racing scene in the first film, The Phantom Menace.  While the vehicles are nicely designed and watching them race and crash is visually pleasing, the sequence lasts for far to long.  We came to see lightsabers not NASCAR! ;)

There is also another point I'd like to bring up - the movies have very little sense of risk.  You see, for a film series where good and evil are so pivotal to the plot, the bad guys seem kind of tame (compared to say, Voldemort from Harry Potter) and there aren't a lot repercussions during battle.  Oh, your hand just got cut off by the enemy?  We'll just replace it with a new one and you'll be perfectly fine.  Oh, you passed away during a battle with a really bad guy?  You can come back as a spirit.

Source: Star Wars Wikia

One thing that did surprise me was how PG these movies were.  The first three were released during a time where PG and PG-13 was basically the same rating (the 13 one didn't exist at that time) in the U.S.A.  Then, the first two in the Prequel Trilogy were also rated PG in the U.S.  It wasn't until the final one released that Star Wars fans saw a PG-13 movie in their beloved series, but even that movie only has a few seconds of film that makes it obtain this rating.  I always thought they were much more violent but they are pretty universally friendly.

In closing, had it not been for Club Penguin, I may have never seen this series of pretty good films.  Have I seen better movies?  In my opinion, yes, the answer is (See the movies to get why I just structured that sentence that way).  But this series is pretty stellar and makes me even more anxious for the upcoming party based on it.

Source: Trainman1405

As Billybob would say, Waddle On!
- Chillin43